Twisted Tales
by Lyvance Callele
Summary: A book report assignment gets Kyohei, Yuki, Ranmaru, Takenaga, and Sunako reading children's fairytales. Yuki becomes a rabbit, Ranmaru - a candle holder. Takenaga - a clock. Kyohei - a ragged prince and Sunako...wait...what!   v
1. Chapter 1

_I found this in a long forgotten folder in my computer's hard drive. I wrote this a very long time ago...like **years** ago..._

_ Since it's a fanfiction, and I believe that fanfictions should be shared to fanfiction websites like these, I'm uploading this fic for everyone to hopefully read and luckily, review. _^ v ^ _I appreciate comments and suggestions, especially constructive ones. Enjoy!_

_Yamato Nadeshiko Shichi Henge or The Wallflower is not mine. _

* * *

><p>A loud roar echoed from the Nakahara mansion.<p>

Kyohei ran back and forth, scratching his head in annoyance while Yuki sat crying on the side of the couch. Ranmaru rested his head on the elbow of the couch. Takenaga took a deep breath and sighed at the sight of the three.

A pile of books lay on the center table of the living room.

"THAT'S IT!" said Kyohei angrily. "I'm fed up with this nonsense! Why the hell do we have to do this anyway?"

"…Because you'll fail in class," said Takenaga.

Kyohei froze. He then gave out another loud roar of anger.

"I can't take this anymore…" cried Yuki. "…It's too thick!"

"Yuki, it's only half an inch thick," said Takenaga, examining the book in his hand that Yuki was supposed to read. He placed the book back on the table, across Yuki.

Yuki stared at the book.

Takenaga was right.

Yuki felt embarrassed. A moment later however, he frowned - his cute wet eyes blinking twice. "It's still thick!" and he sobbed once more.

Takenaga sighed heavily. "You guys really can't appreciate books, can you?"

"How the hell can you appreciate them?" said Kyohei as he opened the pages of the book he held. "They're just full of letters!"

"Hello honey!" said Ranmaru suddenly holding his mobile phone against his ear.

The three stared at him curiously.

"…I have this book report for school. But you see, I couldn't help but think of you and so I couldn't get myself to read a book for it. So I thought I call you instead."

The three stared dismally at Ranmaru. Takenaga espacially glared at him.

"…Yes, I know it's a requirement but honey, you're my life… You'll help me in my book report? Oh no, please, that wasn't my intention…"

"…As if there was anything else," muttered Kyohei.

"…Alright," Ranmaru said smiling. "…if you insist. So can you read this book for me? OUCH!" A book hit his face. He accidentally dropped the mobile phone on the floor.

"You worthless SLOTH!" Takenaga scolded.

"How dare you do that to me?" an enraged Ranmaru replied.

"This book report is your problem, not those kittens' of yours! Try to be responsible for once!"

"I **am** being responsible. I was asking her help to do it!"

"…By asking her to read the book for you?"

"…Why not..? She insisted…"

"Ugh! You are hopeless..."

"At least we're normal people."

"What?"

"I said 'at least we're normal people' – Yuki, Kyohei and me. Only bookworm people do those kinds of stuff."

"You mean read books."

"…Yeah…that kind of stuff…"

Yuki and Kyohei giggled while Takenaga flushed in anger.

"You know, thinking about it now, why don't **you** do our book reports since you're the once who can appreciate them so much?" Ranmaru said.

"Hey! Ranmaru's right!" said Kyohei. "You do it, Takenaga and we'll deal with Noi-chi!"

"WHAT!" exclaimed Takenaga. "…No way! And attending to Noi-chi is not the only thing I do!"

"Really..? I thought it was the only thing you did aside from reading books," Kyohei said.

Takenaga felt his cheeks burn. He then shook his head. "Can't you guys try to like reading books, just for this time? Your grades in class **are** at stake after all."

"Speaking of grades," said Kyohei. "Doesn't Sunako-chan get high grades in English?"

"Hey! You're right!" said Ranmaru. "But you'll be the one to ask her," he said smiling slyly at Kyohei.

"…Why me..?"

"You're closer to her than we are."

"What! No way! Besides, her room is too scary," he said, shaking his hips in fear.

"I don't think she'll be available either," Yuki said. "We all have the same teacher in this subject, don't we?"

"Oh… So she's probably dealing with **her** book report right now," said Ranmaru. "I wonder what kind of book she's reading."

Thought bubbles slowly popped out from their heads.

Takenaga's bubble had Edgar Allan Poe's face. Yuki's bubble had an image of a bloody vampire. Ranmaru's bubble had a bunch of marching skeletons. Kyohei's had the image of Jason slicing a victim with a bloody chainsaw.

The four shivered in fear and disgust.

Just then, Sunako went out from her bedroom. The four looked at her as she walked happily toward the kitchen. The four men looked puzzled at each other. Sunako took a cup of Haagen Dazs Green Tea Ice cream from the refrigerator.

"Oi!" said Kyohei. "Sunako-chan…"

Sunako looked at Kyohei.

"Are you doing a book report too?"

"Yes."

"What book are you making a report on?"

Sunako took out a yellow book from her behind her and showed it to Kyohei with an ecstatic smile on her face.

The four looked at it. "…Day of the Dead…" they read the title.

"What's it about?" asked Kyohei.

"…A day where people get inflicted with a disease that kills them and makes them flesh-eating zombies, eating every person they see."

"…As expected of Sunako-chan…" whispered Takenaga.

The three nodded.

"Have you finished it yet?" Kyohei asked.

Sunako shook her head. "I'm stuck in the part where the zombie eats a victim by sucking the blood from its veins and chewing on its body until only the white bones were left. I can't help but read it over and over again."

The four men turned pale, each shivering in disgust.

"Wait!" said Yuki. "Sunako-chan, does your book have pictures on it?"

"No, it doesn't," Kyohei said already browsing the pages of Sunako's book.

The three stared at him.

"So you can really appreciate reading books?" said Yuki.

"Not really but its okay," Sunako answered.

"Can you read our books for us then?" said Yuki sweetly.

"…What..!"

"I'll do the cooking!" said Yuki.

"I'll clean the house!" said Ranmaru.

"I'll…" Kyohei thought for a while. He then bowed his head and sighed. "I'll buy you Haagen Dazs."

Sunako bowed and thought about it for a while. "No more cooking – more time to be in my room… No more cleaning the house – more time in my bedroom… More Haagen Dazs – kyaa!" she told her self. "Wait! What books?"

"These books," said Yuki showing three books – two of them half-inch thick, and the one left, an inch thick.

"KYAAA! No! My book is two inches thick and I'm still not in the middle!"

"That **is** a problem," said Takenaga.

"Oi! Takenaga," said Kyohei. "Do you have other thinner books there?"

"Hmm… I think I do. Right! Now I remember," Takenaga said. "I just got them from Noi-chi, just in case you guys prefered to read something really thin."

"Why didn't you tell us about that earlier?" the three exclaimed.

"I forgot?"

* * *

><p>Takenaga placed a pile of really thin books on the table. They were children's fairy tale books.<p>

"Beauty and the Beast," read Ranmaru.

"Cinderella," read Kyohei.

"Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs," read Yuki.

"Sleeping Beauty," read Sunako.

"These are children's fairy tales!" cried Ranmaru.

"Those are the thinnest books that I can give you," Takenaga said.

"In that case, that'll have to do," said Kyohei. "Can you read them, Sunako-chan?"


	2. Chapter 2

"Hmm…Yes… I think so."

"Hey, why don't we try reading them while Sunako-chan finishes her book?" said Yuki. "They **are** thin ones after all."

"Yes," said Ranmaru. "Then let's have Sunako read them later to tell us what it's about. That way, we can check whatever we got from reading them."

"Then we don't need Sunako-chan's help," Kyohei said.

"Yes we do," said Yuki. "Takenaga and Sunako-chan can help us understand the books."

"Hmm… Alright…Let's start reading!" shouted Kyohei.

Sunako sat beside Kyohei as she finished her book. Kyohei held "Cinderella;" Yuki held "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs;" Ranmaru held "Beauty and the Beast;" and Takenaga held a hardbound "Alice in Wonderland."

"…Ooh… Snow White loves animals too!" said Yuki.

"This beast needs lessons on handling girls," said Ranmaru.

"I wonder if this Cinderella girl can cook," said Kyohei.

Takenaga smiled at the sight as the four started discussing the books they read.

* * *

><p>"Sunako-chan… Sunako-chan…"<p>

Sunako found her self in the garden of the mansion.

She was about to take Hiroshi-kun back to her room after his regular sun bathing when she heard his voice call her from behind. She looked around and noticed that Hiroshi-kun was nowhere to be found.

Her eyes went wide in shock.

"HIROSHI-KUN!"

Just then, she heard his voice call again. "Sunako-chan… Sunako –chan…"

She looked at every direction, wondering where it came from.

"Sunako-chan… here! In the bush…"

She walked closer to one of the rose bushes. Hiroshi then jumped out f the bush.

He stood jogging in place in front of Sunako. Sunako stared at him in amazement. Her lips stretched in to a big smile.

"Hiroshi-kun!" she excitedly called.

"Come, Sunako-chan!" Hiroshi jogged quickly away from her and toward a nearby forest.

"Hiroshi-kun! Where are you going?" She quickly ran to follow him.

"Hurry, Sunako-chan. We'll be late!"

"…Late for what?"

"Hurry Sunako-chan… Hurry!" Hiroshi swiftly entered a hole in one of the old trees of the thick forest.

"Ooh! Hiroshi-kun!" Sunako followed him. But when she entered the hole, she found herself in a dark bottomless pit. She wagged and screamed, feeling herself fall down toward nowhere.

"Sunako-chan… Sunako-chan…"

* * *

><p>Sunako winced and slowly opened her eyes. She saw a blinding light in front of her.<p>

"Too… bright…" she gasped.

The brightness slowly weakened but it left her vision a blur.

Sunako rubbed her eyes and soon after, her vision cleared.

She found herself in a dark room filled with cobwebs and antique furniture. The windows were blocked by wood boards nailed on their window frames. Only the small dots of light coming from the holes of the wood boards and of the old walls dimly lit the room.

Sunako sat up. It was then that she noticed her bed.

She looked at it and saw how tattered the blankets were and how old it smelled. Beside her bed was an old side table drawer with dusts and spider webs all over it.

She looked at the floor and noticed that it was made of wood. It was old and dusty.

She then looked around and noticed how small her room was. The old furniture took majority of the space in the room. She stood up and walked toward the window.

It had no curtains.

"What's happening here?" she muttered.

She looked around again. She then felt her lips stretch from ear to ear.

She started to giggle… to chuckle…It sounded louder and louder until it echoed into a horrible laughter – like that of a hideous witch.

Lightening struck and thunder shook the ground. She changed from her midget 'chibi' form to her bone chilling hag form.

Everything was beautiful. Everything was magnificent. Everything was perfect…

Sunako stopped. She looked around again… She noticed something missing.

"HIROSHI-KUN! JOSEPHINE! AKIRA – KUN!"

She quickly opened the cabinets, drew out the drawers and turned the tables and bed over. But there was no sign of the mannequins. Nor were there any signs of her collection of horribly gruesome movies, of the TV and of the DVD player.

Everything was too perfect. Sunako realized that she wasn't in her room in the mansion.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

"What is with that horrible noise?" said a high-pitched voice from the door. "It's early in the morning! You're ruining our beauty sleep!"

Sunako stared at the door. Four girls burst into the room.

"If you won't sleep anymore, you might as well get down from here and prepare breakfast!" shouted of them.

"…Right! And while you're at it, we'll be thinking about a way on how we can be with our beloved princes!" said another.

"Yes! Yes!" said the other two.

"Let's go!" They all said. "Goth goth…Loli loli…"

Sunako immediately pulled one of them. "Where is Hiroshi-kun?" she said with a bone-chilling stare.

"AAGH! Momma!" yelled the four.

Frantic footsteps echoed from the stairs.

Sunako suddenly saw a beautiful woman by the door. The woman shined brightly and blindingly - her pheromones illuminating the corners of the room.

"LET GO OF MY DAUGHTER, YOU UGLY GHOST!"

Sunako froze and loosened her grip. "...Ug-ly..."

"Momma!" said the Goth-Loli sisters as they ran to the woman.

"There, there, my darlings… Momma's here…" She then glared at Sunako. "Well? What are you waiting for? Get out of there and fix breakfast! You good for nothing monster…"

Sunako stood petrified at the woman.

"Didn't you hear what I said? Or do you want me to call you using that 'u'-word again?"

"Uh… Yes, I'm going to fix breakfast!"

"Good. And fix that attic while you're at it!"

"Yes ma'am."

The woman walked down the stairs with her four daughters. The sisters stuck out their tongues to insult Sunako.

Sunako stared at the now empty door way, thinking. "That woman… Wasn't she Sayuri-san? …The hostess of the hot spring where her husband was almost murdered… What is she doing here?"

* * *

><p>Sayuri and the Goth-loli sisters sat on the table. They all wore dazzling Western clothes of people from the time of the lord-peasant period. Sunako served the breakfast on the table.<p>

"You didn't change the flowers," Sayuri said.

"Huh?" Sunako looked at the vase at the center of the table. It still had beautifully bloomed flowers. "But… It's still beautiful."

"Sunako, Sunako, Sunako… When will you ever learn? Flowers should be changed everyday to always give the house a fresh ambiance!"

Sunako shivered at her angry tone.

"If you think that way all the time," she said calmly, "how else will I turn you into a lady like my beautiful daughters?"

The four girls giggled.

"Momma," said one of them. "She can't be like us because she's not beautiful."

"Yes! Yes!" agreed the others. "Goth goth, Loli loli!"

Sayuri laughed. "Oh! Of course…How could I forget that? Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha!"

Sunako just stared at them. "This household is really weird," she thought.

"Well, what are you waiting for?" Sayuri asked. "Go and change the flowers!"

"Uh…y…Yes…" Sunako immediately took the vase away from the table.

* * *

><p>Sunako walked out the back door with a basket and a pair of sheers. She wore a red hood over her old peasant dress. "I wonder where my clothes went," she thought.<p>

Sunako walked to the backyard and noticed that it led directly to a dense forest. Sunako was amazed at its darkness.

Maybe there was a headless horseman lurking nearby or a hungry wolf devouring a human being!

She trotted her way into the forest in excitement.

Sayuri grinned as she watched Sunako prance into the forest from her bedroom window. She turned to the chef standing in front of her. "Kill her and place her heart in this box," she said, handing him a wooden box. "Ugly people like her deserve to rot and die."

The chef nodded and went on his way to follow Sunako.


	3. Chapter 3

Sunako was singing her favourite disgusting song when she saw a group of bats fly above her.

She was awed at the sight. Somehow, the bats seemed to respond to her singing – screaming to the tune of her song. Sunako continued to sing as she walked in the woods with the bats following her.

She then heard a voice of someone crying… a cute voice coming from a bush nearby.

She knelt down at the bush and found a boy wearing a white and fluffy costume and a pair of white fluffy rabbit ears.

The boy calmed down and looked at her in his wet and cuddly eyes. Sunako stared at him. Her nose suddenly bled. "A dazzling creature… too bright…" she screamed.

The boy started to cry once more."Scary! Scary!"

Sunako pulled herself together and looked at the boy once more. "Yuki-kun?"

The boy calmed down and looked at her once more but in his jolly eyes. "You know me?"

"Of course I know you…"

"Oh thank you! Thank you! I thought I wouldn't see anyone who knows me and who would help me. Wait! You won't eat me, would you?"

"Uh…No, why would I..."

"Good! Then you will help me, won't you? Won't you?"

"Uh… Okay. What's the problem?"

Yuki started to sob once more. He pointed on his right foot. "It hurts…"

Sunako noticed a big rose thorn pierced on his foot. She felt excited thinking that the wound would spill blood. She immediately pulled it off. Unfortunately, the wound didn't bleed. She stared at it disappointedly.

"Oh thank you! Thank you!" said Yuki cheerfully. "By the way, why are you out here in the woods?"

"Sayuri-san ordered me to get some flowers for the vase in the dining table."

"Ooh…" Yuki then smiled. "If you take me with you, I'll help you. I know a beautiful garden full of beautiful red roses! They would certainly satisfy your mistress."

"Okay."

Yuki then hopped beside Sunako.

"Uh… Yuki-kun, do you really have to hop?" asked Sunako.

"That's what the script said," he said smiling cutely at her.

They soon reached a garden of roses.

"Here, see? Will these do?" Yuki asked her.

"Yes, I guess they will. Thank you," Sunako answered.

"No, no. Thank **you**, for helping me. I'll be off now! Good bye!" And Yuki hopped away.

"Hmm… Why do I have a feeling that I'll be seeing even weirder things here? Oh well. I better cut some flowers before Sayuri-san gets mad at me again." She took her shears and cut a rose from one of the bushes.

"OI!" roared an angry voice from behind Sunako. "How DARE you take a rose from my garden?"

Sunako turned around to see who it was. She was blinded by a bright light. "Oh no… Is this another dazzling creature?" She cleared her vision and stared at the figure in front of her.

She screamed and bled her nose.

"Huh? What a scary and weird creature," said someone in front of her.

"You frightened her too much," another person said.

"She was stealing from me and besides… She looks really scary!" reasoned the person standing in front of her.

"She's still a she...probably," a third person said.

"Hmm… She looks like she's dead. Do we throw her into the pit now?" said the person in front of her.

"NO!" said the two other people.

* * *

><p>Sunako opened her eyes and found herself in another dark room. She was in an old and worn out mansion. She slowly but excitedly walked out to take a look at the place.<p>

"I say we throw her away…" said a voice coming from the dining room. It was the same voice that yelled at her earlier.

"No! Can't you see? She must have arrived here for a reason – to break the spell!" said another voice.

"Yes!" said another voice. "Then all will be back to as it was before! Me in the arms of my kittens…"

"No way," said the first voice. "I won't go back to that life. Don't you get fed up of always having to fix the gates and the backyard?"

"But my Noi-chi…" said the second voice.

"Nah! She's a pain in the ear," the yelling man muttered.

"Come on!" said the third voice. "Surely there is some part in you that wants to go back to our real state."

"Hmm… Nope. There's no part of me like that."

"Ugh… Such a wretched fate…"

Sunako peaked into the dining room. She saw three shining figures – the source of the voices.

The figures saw her too.

"Ah! You're awake!" said one of the three.

Sunako tried to look straight at them...but the light was blinding her. She shielded her eyes from the blinding light as she examined the figures to clearly see who they were.

"Is she… staring at us?" said one of the three people fearfully looking at her.

"Yes… I think so…"

"Do you think she'll eat us?"

"No…She's human – probably."

The person who yelled at her said nothing. He seemed to stare back at her.

He then stood up from his seat and walked toward her. He placed his face in front of hers.

Sunako saw him. She saw his beautiful face.

Blood burst out of her nose.

The blood splashed onto the man's glowing face. "ARGH!… How DARE YOU!" he said, raising his fist in anger.

"No, no, no," said the other two men as they held the yelling man from hurling a blow at Sunako.

Sunako gathered her strength and held her nose.

She looked at them again. "Ranmaru-kun, Takenaga-kun and Kyohei–kun …"

Ranmaru wore a candelabra costume while Takenaga wore a clock costume. Kyohei-kun on the other hand wore a tattered costume of a prince. Their beauty remained stunning despite their odd clothes.

"Please forgive his majesty," Ranmaru said. "He doesn't know what he's doing."

"Yes I do!" Kyohei defended.

"No you don't!"

"Are you alright?" Takenaga asked Sunako as she wiped the blood from her face. Kyohei was wiping the blood on his face with the back of his hand.

Sunako nodded.

"Leave this place," Kyohei said.

"Your majesty!" cried Ranmaru and Takenaga.

"She can break the spell," reasoned Ranmaru.

"I don't want the spell to be broken," Kyohei exclaimed.

"NO! Your majesty…" Ranmaru sobbed.

Takenaga smiled. "You're right. Breaking the spell will do us more harm."

"WHAT?" Ranmaru asked in shock. "What happened to 'but my Noi-chi'?"

Takenaga hurled his fist on the top of Ranmaru's head. "Shut up! I have a plan!" he whispered.

"Oh…"

"Hmm… So you realized it too," Kyohei said, looking at Takenaga with a wide smile on his face. "That's good."

"Yes, and so I agree that she should leave this place at once…"

"Okay," Sunako said, walking away in her plump miniature form.

"HEY! I'm not finished yet!" yelled Takenaga.

"Oh… Does that mean I shouldn't leave yet?" she innocently asked.

Takenaga sighed. "Alright, where was I? ...Yes she should leave… However, we have to consider the fact that she already saw you, your majesty."

Kyohei stared at Takenaga with his burning devil eyes.

"…Not only has she seen you, but she knows where you are. She can tell everyone outside about your existence here! What do you say, your majesty?" Takenaga said. "Do we let her stay or do we let her leave to reveal your location to the world?"


	4. Chapter 4

"We let her leave," Kyohei said, walking away from the group.

"WHAT!" cried Ranmaru and Takenaga.

"But you're avoiding the attention, aren't you?" Takenaga asked.

"Does she look like a person who'd care to tell anyone about me?" Kyohei said smirking at Takenaga.

Ranmaru and Takenaga stared at Sunako for a moment and sighed in defeat.

"He's right," Ranmaru said. "She's the type of creature who wouldn't give a damn about it."

"Now with that done…" Kyohei turned to Sunako. "GET OUT OF MY MANSION!"

Unfotunately, Sunako was happily already twenty steps away from them before Kyohei yelled at her.

"What the… ugh!" Kyohei said irritatedly.

* * *

><p>Sunako suddenly felt her stomach grumble in hunger. "Oh… I haven't had breakfast yet," she said, more to herself than to the other people in the room.<p>

"That's it!" Takenaga said. "Your majesty, can't we at least let her eat?"

"Takenaga," Ranmaru whispered . "We don't have any food prepared. We can't cook remember?"

"We can't," said Takenaga. "But **she** can."

Kyohei laughed aloud. "Sure! If she can prepare herself some food…"

Takenaga grinned. The two led Sunako to the kitchen.

* * *

><p>"This is all we have, you see…" Ranmaru seductively said. The kitchen was full of raw ingredients – spices, meats, eggs, fish, clams, shrimps, crabs and other delectable raw items. "Without you, it's so empty…"<p>

"Ranmaru, cut it out!" said Takenaga. "Sorry about that," he told Sunako. "None of us here can cook so you'll have to cook them on your own."

"Okay."

Sunako got hold of the knife and from her chibi form, she transformed into her horrifying murder-freak-looking form – slicing and chopping the fish and the meats; spilling their blood on her cheeks and hands...

Ranmaru, and Takenaga hid behind the doorway of the kitchen.

"Are you sure we did the right thing?" Ranmaru asked as he shivered in fear.

"She won't kill us – probably," Takenaga said, shaking in horror.

* * *

><p>Kyohei, who was sleeping on his worn out couch, suddenly smelled a mouth-watering scent coming from the kitchen. He immediately opened his eyes and ran to the kitchen to see what it was.<p>

He found an array of scrumptious Japanese cuisine served on the table. He stared at the food as Takenaga and Ranmaru, both admiring Sunako's cooking skills, stood beside her.

Sunako smiled at the food she made. When she was about to get a piece of tempura (deep fried breaded shrimp), Kyohei took one and ate it.

Sunako immediately shouted angrily. "THAT'S MINE!"

"…MMM! DELICIOUS!" cheered Kyohei. He then took more and quickly devoured all the tempura on the plate.

"AAAAAGH!" screamed Sunako. "That's mine! I cooked it for me! That's mine!" she said as she pulled the food left from Kyohei's reach.

"Don't be selfish! Learn to share what you have!" said Kyohei as he pulled them back.

"Look who's talking," whispered Ranmaru and Takenaga.

"Oi," Kyohei said after fighting Sunako in finishing the food. "Why are you here anyway?"

"Takenaga-kun and Ranmaru-kun brought me here to prepare my food," Sunako said.

"I knew that! What I meant was why you were in my garden earlier," Kyohei yelled.

"Oh… Sayuri-san ordered me to pick flowers for the vase on the dining table."

"And you chose to pick my roses."

"I didn't know they were yours."

Kyohei flushed in shame. Ranmaru and Takenaga giggled.

"Ehehem…" Kyohei said. "I can give you some of my roses. But you have to cook three dishes for me in exchange."

"Is this really in the Beauty and the Beast story?" Ranmaru asked.

"No," Takenaga said. "It's just in the script."

"Dear lady," Ranmaru seductively said, reaching his hand out to Sunako's face. "Are you sure you want to do this? His majesty isn't easily pleased especially when it comes to food...although he **is **a glutton."

"Yes."

"…Such a firm answer," Ranmaru whispered to Takenaga.

"They make a good couple, don't they?" Takenaga said. Ranmaru nodded.

"First dish," Kyohei shouted. "Cook me Seafood Nabe. "

"Haven't I cooked that before?" Sunako asked, again more to herself than to anyone else. "Anyway, never mind…"

Sunako took the seafood and vegetables in the kitchen and whipped up seafood nabe. Kyohei tasted the dish.

"Mmm… good. Second dish, cook me burger in garlic sauce!"

"Haven't I cooked that one before too? Nah…never mind…"

Sunako took the meat and other ingredients in the kitchen and whipped up a burger in garlic sauce dish. Kyohei tasted the dish.

"Mmm… well done. Third dish, cook me… deep fried shrimp – tempura!"

Sunako scratched her head. "Wasn't that the dish you just ate? Never mind…" Sunako to the ingredients and whipped up a plate full of fried shrimp (tempura).

"Mmm… excellent! You can really forget everything else in the world when you taste it!"

"Haven't he used that line before? Hmm… I've been asking too much questions, haven't I?"

"Alright, you may go to the garden, get your roses and go home," Kyohei said.

Ranmaru and Takenaga crept beside Kyohei and kicked him toward Sunako. "Lead her there, your majesty," Ranmaru said. "…She doesn't know where it is," said Takenaga.

"W…What!" Kyohei stared at Sunako. He then took a deep breath and sighed. "Fine, follow me."

* * *

><p>Kyohei led Sunako to the garden. But as Sunako approached a rose bush, it's green leaves and the deep red flowers wilted. Sunako couldn't pick a rose without the flower wilting in seconds in her hands.<p>

Kyohei noticed it. "Gee… you're a really odd girl." Kyohei watched Sunako try to pick one flower without wilting it several times. All of her attempts failed.

"Give me that," said Kyohei said, pulling the sheers and the basket from Sunako. He picked the flowers and filled her basket. He shined brightly as he stood there cutting the flowers from the bush.

A fountain of blood immediately splashed out of Sunako's nose as she fell on the ground and fainted in her 'chibi' form.

Kyohei saw her and stared confused at her. He then smiled and laughed. "She's really a queer one."

Kyohei then sat down to help her. He pulled her up but she fell on his chest. He then held her face up to look at her. It was as if he was going to kiss her.

A pair of light glowed from the nearby forest. Hanayashiki (the gang boss and member of the National Boss Association) saw them from a forest bush. "That monster is trying to take the lily of my heart!" he angrily yelled. "I, Hanayashiki Hi…"

"Who's there?" Kyohei shouted as he noticed a movement in the forest bush.

"It is I!" said Hanayashiki - jumping out of the bush. "I am Hanayashiki…"

"Another weird person…" muttered Kyohei.

"Shut up! I'm not going to let you have the lily of my heart!"

"…The lily of your heart?" Kyohei stared at Sunako. "This weird and scary girl is your girlfriend?" Kyohei then burst into laughter. "…What an odd couple! Ha! Ha! Ha!"

Sunako was awaken by Kyohei's loud laughter. She wiped her eyes to clear her blurry vision.

"Oi! You're boyfriend is here," Kyohei told her.

"…Boyfriend?" she asked. "Don't say weird things."

"Eh? But he's really here," Kyohei said.

"But I don't have a boyfriend."

"You don't? Then who's **this** guy?" Kyohei asked, pointing at Hanayashiki.

Sunako looked at the gang boss. "I...don't know."

"Lily of my heart, fear not! I'll save you!" Hanayashiki shouted.

"…So you don't know this monster," Kyohei told Sunako.

A skull suddenly fell beside her.

Kyohei jolted. "What the…"

"KYAAA!" Sunako shouted excitedly. "A skull! A skull!"

"You… like this scary thing?"

Sunako grabbed the skull and hugged it happily.

"I will punish you… kidnapper of the lily of my heart!" Hanayashiki shouted - jumping toward Kyohei and planning to hit Kyohei's head with an iron pipe.

Kyohei and Sunako saw it coming.

Sunako quickly covered Kyohei.

Hanayashiki realized that he would hit Sunako so he threw the pipe away. He instead fell on Sunako and Kyohei.

Kyohei hit his back on the ground catching Sunako's fall. He quickly raised his head to check on Sunako. He didn't notice how Sunako's face was too close to his. By the time he did, it was too late… His lips had touched Sunako's.


	5. Chapter 5

_Thank you so much for the reviews _^ v ^ _I didn't think I would receive such heart-warming comments about this work. _

_THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH!_

_So here are the next chapters. I hope you continue to enjoy 'Twisted Tales'_

* * *

><p>Sunako's nose immediately squirted blood, causing her to faint.<p>

"Oi!" Kyohei cried, catching Sunako's limp body in his arms.

He was shaking her shoulders to wake her up when a colorful ray of light and smoke suddenly surrounded the place. A rainbow-hued, sparkling dust crept up at Kyohei's body.

His clothes changed from being tattered to something beautiful and elegant – one worthy of being worn by a prince. The old mansion became a lustrous palace.

"Great… the spell is broken…" Kyohei muttered.

Hanayashiki quickly got up. He saw Kyohei holding Sunako in his arms and dramatically gasped in horror.

"I'm not letting you have her!" Hanayashiki yelled.

He swiftly snatched the skull from Sunako's hand.

Sunako's eyes snapped open, feeling the skull vanish from her hand. She quickly sat up and saw Hanayashiki holding it. "John!"

"What..? The skull has a name?" Kyohei said staring at Sunako.

Hanayashiki hastily ran toward the forest. Sunako stood up and quickly followed him to retrieve the skull. Dust and smoke covered their flight.

Kyohei was left in the scene - seated and coughing at the thick smoke around him. "Wait! Oi!"

When the smoke faded, Takenaga and Ranmaru, now wearing elegant human clothes as well, rushed to Kyohei. "…Your majesty! The spell is broken!" they exclaimed in excitement.

"I know…" muttered Kyohei.

"She broke it didn't she?" Ranmaru said.

"Yes," Kyohei said eyeing the direction where Sunako and Hanayashiki vanished.

"So you two already kissed?" Takenaga asked.

"Yes. So?" Kyohei said turning to stare at Takenaga.

"Hurray! His majesty has found his true love! Hurray!" exclaimed the two, raising their hands up and jumping up and down in glee.

"What..!"

Rose petals suddenly started to fall from the sky.

"Oh no," Takenaga muttered staring at the sky that was slowly turning into a shade of pink. "It's the fairy who cast the spell on us!"

"Oba-chan!" Ranmaru and Kyohei breathed in fear.

"Yes, it is I!" Oba-chan shouted, wearing a glittering pink cocktail dress, as she hung from a rope ladder tied on a helicopter. "And I am here to congratulate you for breaking the spell. Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha!"

"I don't think she just came here for that," Ranmaru said. "After all, she** was** the one who casted the spell on us."

Takenaga and Kyohei nodded.

"Also, I am here to inform you of another condition in breaking the spell," Oba-chan added.

"What..!" the three exclaimed in shock.

"Hasn't the spell been broken just now?" Takenaga asked.

"That's just the first step of breaking the spell," Oba-chan explained. "There's another step you must do to completely break it!"

"…How cruel…" muttered Takenaga.

"...And what is that other step we need to do?" Kyohei asked, glaring at Oba-chan.

"You, your majesty, must marry your true love – the one who broke the spell, before the coming full moon," Oba-chan answered. "...Or else your kingdom, and titles will vanish. That means you will stay in the midst of commoners - forever in the attention of the maidens of the world!"

"What..!" Kyohei exclaimed in shock. "That's not fair!"

"I don't mind living with the maidens of the world," Ranmaru said flipping his hair his his dainty fingers.

"Ranmaru, we won't have a quiet place to stay anymore," Takenaga said. "They'll swarm us forever."

"Ooh… That **is** a problem," Ranmaru responded, understanding the situation. "Well, that's easy. We can just go to the scary girl and ask her to marry his majesty. By the way, what **is** her name, your majesty?" Ranmaru asked Kyohei.

"I… don't know," he replied - sweating and looking away.

"You what..?" shouted Takenaga and Ranmaru.

"Didn't you ask for her address?" Takenaga asked.

"…Or her mobile phone number?" Ranmaru added.

"No," Kyohei answered. "Why would I? And would she even have a mobile phone in this era?"

"You kissed a girl without knowing anything about her?" exclaimed Ranmaru and Takenaga.

"It was just a kiss…"

"Well now, I have a quest to continue in the name of love," Oba-chan interjected. "So… Goodbye for now! Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha!"

And with that, she flew away in her helicopter.

"We better start looking for her then," Takenaga said. "By the way, where **did** she go?"

"The last thing I remember was that a caricature-boss-looking man took her away," Kyohei answered.

"What..!" exclaimed Ranmaru and Takenaga. "She was kidnapped..? And you didn't do anything..?"

"There was smoke everywhere!" Kyohei defended. "I couldn't see everything clearly. Besides, I think she ran after him because the man took her skull, John."

Ranmaru and Takenaga stared at Kyohei in confusion. They tried to imagine how it happened. "The girl's skull, who's name was John, was taken by the man so she ran after the man?" Takenaga asked, slowly creating an image of a hideous man snapping Sunako's head and skinning it to reveal the skull named John.

Ranmaru and Takinaga turned pale - both imagining the same thing. They shivered at the thought and eventually..ahem...vomited.

"NO!" Kyohei cried seeing their thought bubble. "That wasn't how it happened!"

"Oh..." Takenaga and Ranmaru breathed in relief.

Kyohei explained what exactly happened.

Takenaga held his chin and thought for a while after Kyohei's report on the incident. "So she's not only a weird and scary girl but also, she's a weird and scary girl who loves scary stuff."

"Yes, it looks that way," Kyohei said scratching his head.

"Then I might just know how we can see her again," Takenaga said smiling confidently at the two.

"That's great Takenaga!" Ranmaru cheered. "You're really a genius!"

"Oi," Kyohei said. "Do I really have to marry that scary girl?"

"YES!" Takenaga and Ranmaru scolded in the strictest tone they could muster.

"She's your true love after all," Takenaga said.

"…And you make a good couple," Ranmaru teased.

"What..?" Kyohei yelled in shock.

* * *

><p>Meanwhile, Hanayashiki stopped in the barn of Sayuri's farm. He worked as a peasant farmer for her land. Hanayashiki laid John on a table beside him. Sunako banged the barn doors open angrily, still breathing heavily from the sudden fleet.<p>

"Lily of my heart," Hanayashiki called happily. "You came to see me!"

"John!" Sunako cried, ready to hit Hanayashiki.

Hanayashiki saw her furious stance and her desire to take the skull from him. "Hit me and I'll hit this skull 'til it breaks!" he quickly taunted.

Sunako slid her front feet forward as if preparing for an attack.

This frightened Hanayashiki. He gasped and covered his face.

Sunako bowed to surrender.

Hanayashiki put down his hands and chuckled. "I know you won't hurt me, lily of my heart!"

He then quickly tied her up to prevent her from attacking him. He also gave her piles of flowers to please her.

Sunako suddenly remembered her chore. "I forgot to take the flowers!" she gasped. "Oh well… Maybe these flowers will do," she said looking at the flowers that Hanayashiki piled around her.

As if on cue, Sayuri burst into the barn. "Hiromi-kun, I'll need a fattened pig to be butchered!" she yelled.

She walked further into the barn and saw Sunako tied up. She gasped in shock and anger. "Hiromi!" she cried out. "What are you doing to my step daughter?"

"Sa…Sayuri-san…" Hanayashiki said, shivering in fear at her furious tone.

"How dare you do this to her?" she shouted. "Let her go at once!"

Hanayashiki did as he was told.

Sunako got home and used the flowers from Hanayashiki for the vase on the center table.

* * *

><p>"You failed!" Sayuri-san snapped angrily to the chef standing behind her in the kitchen.<p>

"She had too many people around her," the chef reasone. "Next time, I'll have her heart, I promise."

"You better do."


	6. Chapter 6

"Momma! Momma!" the Goth-loli sisters called out in excitement as they sat around the dining table with Sayuri. "We just received an invitation from Prince Kyohei! He's having a Halloween ball tonight and we're all invited! He'll be picking his bride there too!"

"That's great news!" Sayuri-san said. "You can become queen of the kingdom!"

A dark cloud suddenly surrounded her. Her eyes slowly turned red. "…And I will be rich!" she muttered.

"Yes! And I'll marry Prince Kyohei…" cried each of them in excitement. "Let's do our best to be with our prince! Goth-goth…Loli-loli…"

Sunako entered the dining room with the food she cooked for dinner. "…I wonder where Hiroshi-kun is," she muttered, placing the food on the table. Recalling what she heard from the Goth loli sisters, she gasped in excitement. "Could he be in that Halloween ball? Then I must go there and find him!"

"…You? Going to the ball?" the sisters asked. They looked at each other for a moment before they burst into laughter. "You won't fit there! Ha! Ha! Ha! You don't even have a dress to wear! Goth-goth… Loli-loli…"

"And even if you find a dress to wear," Sayuri said eyeing Sunako. "…You'll still be out of place. A ball is a place for beautiful people, not **ugly** people like you…"

Sunako froze at the sound of the word "ugly."

The five burst into laughter.

"Can you imagine Sunako attending the ball?" Lassine asked.

"She'll look silly!" Roxanne said

"What a hilarious scene!" Madeleine exclaimed.

"Yes! An ugly girl like her in a beautiful ball… funny! Ha! Ha! Ha!" Yvonne said.

"Goth-goth loli-loli!" the sisters added.

Sunako quickly ran up to her room.

She threw her self on her bed and cried.

The word "ugly" echoed in her head. Tears continued to stream down her cheeks until she eventually fell asleep.

* * *

><p>Sunako woke up hours later hearing a loud noise from outside. She stood up and peeped through one of the holes of her window.<p>

She saw Sayuri and the Goth-loli sisters stepping into the carriage. They all wore beautiful dresses. The sisters wore princess costumes while Sayuri wore a lustrous dress fit for a queen.

"What if Sunako-chan decides to follow us?" Yvonne asked.

"Oh she won't, dear," Sayuri said. "She'll definitely stay in the house," she continued - danggling a key from her delicate fingers. "After all, a ball is a place for beautiful people, not ugly people like you," she told herself smiling truimphantly at the key.

Sunako sighed and bowed her head as the sounds of laughter and trotting horse hooves faded in the distance.

She turned around and sat on her bed. She remembered what Sayuri told her...how ugly she was...

"Sunako-chan!" called a voice from the door.

Sunako turned her head toward the voice - puzzled as to who it was.

She then saw two dancing balls of light. It shined brightly and lit up her dark room.

Sunako tried to cover her eyes. It was too blinding for her.

She then noticed two silhouettes. She scratched her eyes and as her vision cleared, she saw Noi-chan and Tamao-chan - both wearing a shimmering fairy outfit and holding a wand.

"D…d..d…Dazzling!" Sunako screamed. Fountains of blood spurt out from her nose, causeing her to fall unconscious on the floor.

"Oh no!" cried Tamao-chan. "Is she alright?"

"Yes. That's just what happens when she sees beautiful creatures," Noi said sighing. "So that means we're beautiful. Lucky!" she cheerd in excitement. "However, this is no time to recognize her appreciation for our beauty. She has a ball to attend. Get up, Sunako-chan! We are your fairy godmothers and we're here to help you get in that ball!"

Sunako winced at the sound of Noi's high-pitched voice. It woke her up. "…ball?"

"Yes!" Noi said. "His majesty's, Prince Kyohei's, Halloween ball of course!"

"Oh… But I'm not going there," Sunako said standing up.

"…What..?" Noi exclaimed. "If it's because of what that monster, Sayuri-san, told you, don't believe her! She's the ugly one! She married your father to take your money and property. She then conspired with the chef to kill him so she can take all your money!"

"…She… married my father?" Sunako imagined her father and Sayuri-san getting married.

Her father was very big compared to Sayuri...really big compared to Sayuri. And she was sure Sayuri could never defeat her mother in a brawl. So...how did Sayuri marry her father?

"Well… that's what the script said," Noi explained suddenly holding a folder. She then threw it away and looked back at Sunako. "Anyway, you have to go to the ball. You're Prince Kyohei's true love!"

"Don't say weird things," Sunako said.

"…But if you don't go there, Prince Kyohei won't be able to be with you," Tamao-chan said. "He'll be lonely and the kingdom will be taken from him."

"He's too dazzling anyway," Sunako reasoned, shrugging her shoulders.

"Eh? Sunako-chan," Noi said pouting sadly at her. "Where is your heart? It's not just any ball, it's a Halloween ball! The palace will be full of scary things like jack-o-lanterns, skeletons, monsters and spider webs!"

Sunako's eyes sparkled in excitement "Scary things? Skeletons? Monsters? Spider webs? Maybe Hiroshi-kun and the others are there! I'll go then! I'll go to the ball!"

"That's the spirit!" Noi cheered.

Sunako quickly kicked the door, breaking the lock and hurling a dismantled door on the hall.

"Wait! What are you doing?" Noi asked.

"…Going to the ball," Sunako answered.

"You can't go there like that! You need a costume!"

"A costume… So I can't go," Sunako said turning back to her bed.

"Wrong!" Noi said. "That's why we're here! Stand still, Sunako-chan!" Noi waved her wand. Sunako's peasant dress changed into a beautiful black gown. Her long hair curled into beautiful long locks, held together by a red rose at the back of her head. Her pale lips turned red as blood. "Ta-daa!" Noi said cheerfully. "…Now the shoes!" Noi waved her hands once more. Sunako's slippers turned into a pair of glass high-heeled shoes.

"Kyaa!" Sunako screamed in shock and changed into her chibi-form. Shook her head quickly. "No!"

"Just try it and walk," Noi pleaded.

Sunako took a step forward. But before she could lift her other foot forward, she fell, head first, on the floor.

"I see," Noi sighed. "Then maybe this will do," she waved her wand and the glass shoes changed into a pair of black even-high-heeled boots.

Sunako stood up and faced them. "It's a good thing your skirt is long enough to hide them!" Noi said. "Now, you'll need a ride."

"Let me take care of that," Tamao said. She waved her wand. The three disappeared from the room and found themselved in front of the road. She then called out, "Old man!"

"Yes, madam!" a voice replied. A sparkling black limo suddenly parked in front of them.

"Ooh! Beautiful!" Noi said. "…Now for your attendants!" She waved her wand on the limo. The doors opened and out came Hiroshi, and George. They all wore tuxedos. The windows opened. Josephine, wearing her beautiful black gown, waved her hand to Sunako as Akira sat beside her.

"Hiroshi-kun! George! Josephine! Akira-kun!" cried Sunako happily. She ran and embraced them tight. "I thought I lost you…"

"We'll take you to the ball," George said.

"But I don't want to go to the ball. Besides, you're all here already," Sunako said.

"Don't you want to go home?" Josephine asked.

"Go… home?" Sunako said feeling suddenly confused about what was happening.

"Yes," Akira said. "Home… to the mansion… to the four of them."

"…To the four of them…" Sunako remembered how Kyohei, Takenaga, Yuki and her shared each others company – how the mansion became a home for her even when her blood relatives weren't around.

She realized how much she missed them with the cruel treatment she had from the four sisters and Sayuri.

Sunako slowly changed from her 'chibi' form to her lady-like form. "Home…," she said smiling beautifully at the thought. "Yes… I want to go home."

"Then come," Hiroshi said. "We can't be late."

Sunako smiled and nodded.

"Wait!" Noi exclaimed. "Before you go, remember that the spell only lasts 'til midnight so you have to get back before the clock strikes twelve or you'll change into your peasant clothes in front of everyone. That would surely make you out of place."

"...Twelve o'clock? ...I'll be out of place?" Sunako said - eyes wide and starting to panic at the thought of her being called 'ugly' in front of the crowd in the ball.

"Anyway, good luck, Sunako-chan!" Noi said. And with that, Hiroshi and George grabbed and pushed a panic-stricken, petrified Sunako into the limo.

"Have a nice night, Sunako-chan!" Tamao said.

The limo drove away with Sunako screaming.

"NOOO!"


	7. Chapter 7

In the palace's Holloween ball, Kyohei - wearing a princely outfit - sat dully on his throne up the balcony with his right cheek limply resting over his right hand. He yawned at the sight of the ladies flocking the ballroom and beautifying themselves in their costumes to catch his devil eyes.

"Your majesty," Ranmaru said, wearing a vampire costume. "Can you not spot her yet?"

"I doubt she'd even come," Kyohei muttered, sighing lazily.

"She **will** come, your majesty," Takenaga - in a warlock outfit - said, smiling and waving at Noi from the balcony.

Kyohei grunted and looked away. "I hope so," he whispered. "This is getting really boring."

* * *

><p>Sunako gave a heavy sigh. "I might as well go, huh?" she told Josephine.<p>

"We **are** almost there, after all," Josephine replied.

Sunako looked out of the window and saw a dazzling palace with beautiful star-like shimmering lights shining around it amidst the black night sky. As they drove closer to the palace, she realized that the lights came from the jack-o-lanterns arranged everywhere.

This amazed and excited her.

"It's a good thing they made a Halloween ball even though it's summer," Akira said.

The three other attendants nodded.

When they reached the gates, they saw a crowd of carriages and ladies, trying to get in to see the prince.

"I don't think we'll be able to make it inside with this crowd," Hiroshi said.

Sunako was looking at the crowd ahead of them when she heard a knock at the window. She slid the window glass down and saw Yuki, still in his cuddly bunny outfit. "Hi! Are you here for the ball too?" he asked

"Uh… I guess so…" Sunako said.

Yuki smiled. "Come with me! I know a back door!" he whispered.

Sunako walked out of the limo and followed Yuki as he hopped to the garden.

"Are you sure you can't walk?" Sunako asked recalling how Yuki should be able to walk on two legs.

"No… I'm afraid I can't yet…" replied Yuki, breathing heavily from every hop he made.

* * *

><p>"Oi! I'll just go to the bathroom," Kyohei said standing up from his throne and walking toward the stairs. "This is really tiring," he said walking down the hallway and passing the entrance to the ballroom.<p>

Unfortunately, one of the maidens in the ball spotted him.

"Look! The prince! He's out there!" she cried out ecsatically.

Kyohei heard them. He quickly took a glance of what was behind him.

He saw girls...groups of girls...waves of girls...flooding toward him.

Kyohei immediately ran around the palace to hide from them. "Great… Now this is exciting…"

* * *

><p>Yuki stopped at the rose garden. He then pointed at the glowing second floor of the palace. "That's where the ball is held. But you can pass through this pathway here," he said pointing at the brick path in front of them. He then turned to look at Sunako. "We can… huh? Where is she?"<p>

While walking with Yuki, Sunako spotted a life-size statue of a gargoyle standing at the center of the rose garden. She quickly ran toward it to get a closer look of the statute.

Sunako gazed at the gargoyle happily. "Cute!" she said, blushing while caressing its cheek.

* * *

><p>Kyohei escaped the crowd by running through several secret passages in the palace. But to ensure his safety, he jumped off the nearest window and ran out to the rose garden. He then slowly walked toward the rose lawn to catch his breath.<p>

Kyohei suddenly noticed a silhouette of a lady in a dress that seemed to be talking to one of his gargoyle statues. He grunted, fearing it was one of the girls in the ball. But because it was close to his scary gargoyle statue, he figured he should check who it was.

He stealthily walked toward the silhouette. With every careful step he took toward her, he realized and remembered who she was.

The moon, as if conspiring naughtily against Kyohei, gave him a breathtaking view of her.

Kyohei stood frozen for a moment. He was too amazed to move. She looked somewhat...different from what he expected but she still looked scary.

He smiled. "Oi!"

Sunako looked at him.

"So you **did** come," Kyohei said walking closer to her.

* * *

><p>"Ah! There she is!" Yuk said, looking down from the balcony where Takenaga, Ranmaru, Noi and Tamao stood.<p>

"Good job, Yuki!" Takenaga said.

"That was great acting you did back there," Ranmaru told Tamao. "…Shouting like Noi-chan!"

Tamao smiled. "Thank you!"

"Well," Noi said, standing near Takenaga. "Now that they're with each other, let's make them **near** each other. Tamao-chi!"

Tamao smiled and nodded. She and Noi waved their wands in the air.

A dark cloud covered the moon. And slowly, a shower of rain fell down on the garden.

"Eh? It's raining..?" Kyohei said, looking up at the weeping night sky. "This isn't in the story."

Sunako gazed up at the dark clouds. "Ooh… Could there be thunder storms too?" she aske in excitement.

It was then that Kyohei remembered he wasn't alone. He looked at Sunako. "Come on, before you get wet…"

"Huh?" Sunako stared blankly at Kyohei.

Kyohei realized that she wasn't going to leave the statue. He sighed and pulled her hand.

"What the..."

"You can't play in the rain on that dress, idiot," Kyohei said, quickly dragging Sunako with him as he ran toward a pavilion.

They were already wet when they reached the shade.

Kyohei, breathing heavily from running, rested his back against one of ts pillars. He gazed at Sunako who sat herself down to look at the jack-o-lanterns romantically giving the rose vine-covered pavilion relaxing hues of light. She changed into her chibi form and rested her head on one of them.

Kyohei chuckled at the sight. He walked and sat beside her.

"Why did you come here?" Kyohei asked, leaning his back on the pillar that was nearest to where he sat.

"I want to go home," Sunako answered, still resting her head on the glowing pumpkin.

"...Go home?" Kyohei asked. "Don't you already live in your home?"

Sunako shook her head. "No," she said. "They're not my home." Sunako raised her head and sat up straight. "Takenaga-kun, Ranmaru-kun, Yuki-kun and Kyohei-kun… **They** are my home."

Kyohei stared shocked at Sunako. Various pieces of images suddenly flashed into his mind – images of him with Takenaga, Ranmaru, Yuki and Sunako eating seafood hot pot together in winter...the five of them running away from trouble and enjoying each one's company in the mansion... "What the… you…"

Sunako looked at Kyohei.

Kyohei leaned closer to Sunako and looked deep into her eyes.


	8. Chapter 8

_Thank you all so much for reading and reviewing this story ^ _v ^_ I'm really happy to hear (or read) how entertaining this story was for you. _

_I hope you continue to enjoy "Twisted Tales." _

_Please read and review. The Wallflower is not mine._

* * *

><p>Kyohei leaned closer to Sunako - eyes taking hungry glances at her lips and eyes.<p>

Sunako watched Kyohei lean closer...closer...she could feel his breath...

Blood squirted out from her nose like a fountain – eventually causing her to faint.

"…Nosebleed… again," Kyohei muttered, catching her in his arms. But he smiled at her.

Kyohei lifted her up and laid her on his lap.

* * *

><p>Sunako found herself squinting in the dark. She winced for a moment before opening her eyes.<p>

"Finally," Kyohei said. "I thought you won't wake up any more."

She wiped her eyes and sat up. "What happened?"

"Your nose bled," Kyohei answered. "Why do you do that anyway? Are you sick of something?"

"No," Sunako answered. "I do that when I see dazzling creatures."

Kyohei smirked. "Dazzling creatures, eh?"

They then heard a low and loud sound echoing from a distance. "Ding...dong! Ding...dong!"

"What was that?" Sunako asked.

"That's the town's clock tower," Kyohei said. "It sounds that way when it strikes twelve."

"...Twelve? So… it's twelve o'clock?" Sunako screamed - panicking.

"Yes," Kyohei answered. "It's twelve o'clock midnight. Why? Do you change into a really horrible monster every midnight?" he asked, laughing at the thought.

"Yes!" Sunako answered, quickly standing up on her feet.

"Eh? Is that for real?"

"I have to go!" she said. She then ran away from Kyohei and out of the garden.

"Huh? What a weird creature," Kyohei muttered.

Suddenly...It hit him - what Oba-chan told him.

"...You, your majesty, must marry your true love – the one who broke the spell, before the coming full moon or else your kingdom, and titles will vanish. That means you'll stay in the midst of commoners, forever in the attention of the maidens of the world..."

Kyohei immediately stood up. "Oi! Wait!" he shouted, running hastily to catch her. "Tell me your name! Oi!"

Sunako was a good runner. She ran like a race horse.

Kyohei smirked. "Neh, is this really a girl?"

But before Sunako could run down the steps to the place where the limo was parked in, Kyohei got hold of her right boot. She fell on the ground. "Let go!" she shouted.

"Not until you tell me your name!"

Sunako quickly untied her right boot, pulled her foot out and ran speedily to the limo.

Kyohei stared schocked at what Sunako did. "What the..!"

Josephine slammed the door shut after pulling Sunako in. The limo then drove home like a speeding rocket. The smoke it released covered everything in Kyohei's sight. The fog of dust and smoke made him cough.

When the smoke cleared, the limo was gone. "Damn it…" Kyohei muttered. But he smirked when he remembered how fast Sunako ran.

"Your majesty!" echoed three familiar voices from afar.

"Huh?" Kyohei said, turning around to see the people behind the irritating call.

He saw Takenaga, Ranmaru and Yuki running toward him.

"Your majesty! Did you get her name and address?" Takenaga asked.

"No," Kyohei said. "She ran like a race horse."

"Oh no…" Yuki and Ranmaru sighed in disappointment.

Kyohei frowned. "Maybe if you didn't make the spell last until midnight, she wouldn't run away," he scolded.

The three froze and stiffly smiled at Kyohei. "That was what the script said, your majesty," Takenaga reasoned.

Kyohei sighed. He looked at Yuki. "And where did my royal pet play for the past afternoon again?" he asked.

Yuki shyly smiled at him. "I was just hopping nearby…"

"…And not playing cupid like these two?"

Yuki blushed and froze. "Uh… No, of course not… That's not my job anyway…"

Kyohei smiled.

"Your majesty," Ranmaru said eyeing the black apparel that Kyohei held in one hand. "What is that thing you're holding in your hand?"

"Oh this?" Kyohei asked lifting the boot up. "I got it when I tried to stop her. It's funny! She wears a pair of even-heeled boots while wearing a dress! Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha!"

"That's it!" Takenaga exclaimed. "We can still find her using that boot!"

"You mean fit this to every girl in the kingdom?" Kyohei asked. "Oh...come on! How many women here can have the same size of feet that scary girl has?"

"That's what the script said," Ranmaru, Takenaga, and Yuki said.

"Sheesh…that script really sucks," Kyohei muttered. "Who the hell wrote that piece of crap?"

On the balcony above them was Sayuri furiously angered at what happened. "That ugly girl is interfering with my plans," she muttered. "She has to vanish before she ruins everything…"

* * *

><p>AND so Ranmaru and Takenaga (dressed in their elegant royal attendant clothes) together with Yuki (still in his cuddly bunny costume) roamed the kingdom, fitting the boot to every woman they saw. Kyohei disguised himself as a coach driver wearing a pair of "swirled" glasses.<p>

Amazingly, no one's foot had fit the boot so far. And those whose foot eventually did, disgusted the boot – proving they couldn't be its owner.

"This is stupid," Kyohei muttered, driving the royal carriage. "Why don't you just ask Noi-chan and Tamao-chan where she lives?"

"…Because that's not what the script said," Ranmaru, Takenaga and Yuki answered.

"Besides," Ranmaru said smiling slyly at Kyohei. "It's nice to see how many women will chase you once you fail to claim your true love, your majesty."

Takenaga and Yuki laughed.

Kyohei scowled. "Shut up!"

They soon reached the Goth-loli sisters' house.

"This is pretty scary, don't you think?" Ranmaru asked, staring at the house's old wooden door. "A perfect place for her to live in…"

"According to our map of the kingdom, this is Sayuri-san's house. She has four daughters – the Goth-loli sisters and one step daughter, Nakahara Sunako," Takenaga said reading a wide map with sticky notes pasted on it.

"Nakahara Sunako..?" Kyohei asked. "Why does that sound familiar?"

"Do you think she's one of her daughters?" Ranmaru asked Takenaga.

"Well, they **are **the only household in the kingdom that we haven't visited yet," Takenaga asnwered. "We might as well hope and think so."

"Can we get on with it quickly?" Yuki begged, hiding behind Kyohei as he shivered in fear. "This place is really scary…"

"Then let's do this!" said Ranmaru. He knocked the door. "Knock! Knock!" he happily said.

Sayuri opened the door. "Oh! Your majesties! Come in! Come in!" she said smiling.

The four froze for a time upon seeing her beauty.

"Her pheromones are amazing…" said Yuki. "You'll forget how creepy this house looks like."

The three nodded.

"Sayuri-san," said Ranmaru. "We are here to find the owner of this boot."

"So I heard your highness."

"Please… A woman of your beauty need not give such formality."

Sayuri giggled blushing.

"Oi, Ranmaru," whispered Kyohei. "Hurry up and let's finish this first."

"Ah yes, yes…" said Ranmaru. "But call me Ranmaru, Sayuri-san."

"As you wish your… oh… Ranmaru-kun."

"Ah… such a beautiful voice…"

"We'll come in," said Takenaga shyly at Sayuri.

"Yes please," she answered.

"I have four daughters," said Sayuri as she served tea to the four, sitting on the couch.

"I'm afraid you don't look like you do," said Ranmaru.

"Thank you," she said blushing.

"Pardon me, Sayuri-san," said Takenaga. "But according to our record, you have five daughters. You have a step daughter, don't you? Nakahara Sunako?"

"Ah yes… That dear child of mine… Unfortunately, I don't think you'll need her. She never went to the ball last night. She never liked such affairs."

Kyohei's devil eyes took a glance at Sayuri. "She doesn't like such affairs, madam?"

"Yes."

"Then she's a very odd lady."

"Yes, very odd… You wouldn't like her."

"Then I think we need her, Sayuri-san. His majesty described the owner as a very odd girl – someone no one would usually like."

Takenaga and Yuki got Kyohei's point.

"But she never came with us to the ball," said Sayuri.

"Still, she **is** counted as one of the maidens in this kingdom," said Takenaga. "And his majesty's order is to fit this boot on every maiden of the kingdom."

"So be it, your highness. But I don't think she's here right now. She's in the woods picking some flowers for the house."

"We'll wait for her, then. In the meantime, we can see if the boot fits any of your four daughters. "

"Ah yes! Yes… I'll just call them." She immediately ran upstairs.

Kyohei turned to Yuki who sat beside him. "Yuki, do you want to play outside?" he said smiling.

"…Play? But I want to help you find her!"

"You will. Go play outside."

Yuki understood what he meant and nodded. "I'll go play outside!" He then hopped out to the back yard.

"I have a strong feeling she's here," said Takenaga.

"I just hope she's not Sayuri-san," said Ranmaru. "It would break my heart."

"I wish Tamao-chan can hear this," said Takanaga.

The four sisters went down. They looked excited to see the two handsome royalties in front of them. "Ranmaru-kun! Takenaga-kun!"

The stood and bowed. They all sat down and the two explained why they came. Kyohei showed them the boot. Surprisingly, the four jumped joyfully at the sight of it. They thought it was stylish and beautiful. They then raised the end of their skirts to reveal their shoes. The three froze at the sight of it. All four wore even-high-heeled boots.

"This is going to be a bit of a problem," said Takenaga.

"Hopefully, they have different foot sizes," said Ranmaru.

Kyohei gave a heavy sigh and whispered. "And hopefully, it doesn't fit any of them." He then looked out at the window. He could see the forest at the end of the backyard. He gave a heavy sigh once more.


	9. Chapter 9

Meanwhile, Sunako walked in the woods once more with her black peasant clothes and red hood. She held a basket in her right hand. At the same time, the chef held his knife - following her stealthily.

Yuki screamed.

"Kyaaa!" Yuki cried upon seeing the chef. "Scary!"

The chef was startled.

Sunako ran quickly toward Yuki. Her nose secreted a fountain of blood upon seeing Yuki's cute face.

"This is no time to nosebleed and faint!" said Yuki. "Help me!"

Sunako shook her head and got up. Yuki pointed at the chef who already raised his knife to smite Yuki.

"Butcher knife!" said Sunako excitedly. She immediately jumped to take the knife. She got hold of the chef's hand on the handle of the knife.

"Die!" said the chef as he pushed the knife toward Sunako's chest.

Sunako changed from chibi form to woman-form and quickly threw the chef head-first on the ground.

"Cool!" said Yuki. "She's just like his majesty… They really make a good couple!"

She got hold of the knife and held it tight happily. "…Butcher knife! I have a butcher knife!"

"Come!" said Yuki as he pulled Sunako. "We have to go before he gets the knife from you."

The two ran back to the house.

"Ooh! It fits! It fits!" said Lassine after wearing the boot on her right foot.

"Wait! Let me try," said Roxanne as she pulled the boot. She wore it on her right foot. "Ooh! It fits! It fits!"

"Wait! Let me try it on!" said Madeleine as she pulled the boot. The same thing happened and Yvonne tried the boot on.

"This is definitely a problem," said Ranmaru. "They all have the same size of feet as the boot."

"I guess his majesty will have four wives instead of one," said Takenaga.

"I am **not** marrying any of them!" muttered Kyohei.

"But the boot fit all of them," Ranmaru said.

"Wait! Remember what happened when we first saw her in the garden?" said Takenaga.

"Yes," said Ranmaru. "She fainted."

"No," said Kyohei. "Her nose bled. It made her faint. Her nose bleeds when she sees beautiful or dazzling people."

"We're beautiful people ourselves," Takenaga said smiling at Ranmaru.

"We should make her nose bleed," Ranmaru said smiling back. "Dear kittens, may we have first your attention please?"

The four looked at the two.

Takenaga and Ranmaru stared at them.

The four sisters stared back.

Takenaga and Ranmaru stared at them.

The four sisters stared back.

Takenaga and Ranmaru stared at them.

"Hmm… Their nose isn't bleeding," Takenaga finally said.

"What?" wondered the Goth-loli sisters.

"You see, the owner of this boot has another unique characteristic," said Ranmaru.

"Her nose bleeds when she sees beautiful people," said Takenaga.

"…Your majesty! We're here!" called Yuki as they reached the living room. He pulled Sunako's hand toward the living room.

Sayuri stood shocked at the sight of her. She then saw the knife on Sunako's basket. "Sunako! What are you doing with that knife?"

Sunako looked at the knife and smiled. "…Butcher knife!" she shrieked in excitement.

"A man tried to kill us, your majesty!" Yuki said. "But she threw him head-first to the ground and got hold of his knife!"

"Is that true?" Kyohei, Ranmaru and Tekanaga asked. "Amazing!"

"We'll send soldiers to catch that man," Takenaga said. "Anyway, we are here to find the owner of this boot, Nakahara-san," he said showing the boot.

Sunako saw the shoe. "Oh… you have my boot." She then looked up to Takenaga. "Tha-" Blood squirt out of her nose as she fell on the floor unconscious.

"AAAGH! NOSEBLEED!" cried the four lads. They rushed to her side. "Are you okay?"

The goth-loli sisters stood surprised at the sight of the four attending to Sunako. "How dare she take their attention from us? She will pay for this! Goth-goth loli-loli!"

While waking Sunako up, Kyohei slipped the boot on Sunako's right foot. It fit perfectly. He smiled.

Sunako then woke up and sat up. She saw the four all looking at her. At the count of three, her nose bled furiously once more, throwing her on the floor unconscious.

"She should learn to stop doing that before she kills her self," Ranmaru said.

The three nodded.

"Well now, I see we've accomplished our mission here," said Takenaga as he stood up. "We thank you for taking care of her, Sayuri-san. As her family, you and your daughters will have a royal invitation for Nakahara Sunako and his majesty, Prince Kyohei's wedding in the palace."

Sayuri could barely say a word to him. She stood shocked and staring at Sunako.

"Don't worry, Sayuri-san," Ranmaru said holding her hand. "I will take good care of your step daughter for you."

"Uh… Tha-Thank you. Bu…But must you really go now? I mean… Can you not take her tomorrow morning instead? This seems quiet fast don't you think?"

"It is only right to take her now," Kyohei said. "It was his majesty's order to bring her straight to the palace at once."

The three glanced at Kyohei clearly surprised.

"I see… then… So be it," Sayuri said. "But take utmost care of her. She becomes really scary most of the times."

"I'm afraid that's exactly why his majesty liked her," said Kyohei smiling sharply.

The three smirked at his statement.

* * *

><p>"So that's why you like her, your majesty," Ranmaru said while they all rode the coach back to the palace.<p>

"Eh? What was that?" said Kyohei jolting from his deep contemplation.

Yuki smiled at Kyohei's face puzzled face. "You like Sunako-chan, your majesty!"

"What..?" Kyohei exclaimed.

"You like her because she's scary," said Takenaga.

"Oi! Don't misinterpret those things I said earlier! I just said them so we can get out of the place as soon as possible," Kyohei defensively said. "Besides, Yuki said it himself – someone is trying to kill her."

"Now that you've mentioned it your majesty, you're right," Takenaga said. "You were not far from the house, were you Yuki?"

"No. I could still faintly see the house from where we were back there," Yuki answered. "And from the position of the man when I saw him, I say he had been following her the moment she entered the woods. He stood directly behind her!"

"Directly behind her, you say?" Kyohei said thinking deeply again. "I see…"

"We'll deploy soldiers to strictly guard every entrance in the palace your majesty," said Takenaga. "We'll also have soldiers guarding her bedroom door to make sure she stays safe."

"Speaking of ensuring safety," Ranmaru said. "Your majesty, may we deploy soldiers to guard Sayuri-san and her daughters? They **are** after all, Sunako-chan's family."

Yuki and Takenaga stared at Ranmaru. "You just like Sayuri-san."

"Who wouldn't like her? She's such a beautiful and gentle flower…" he replied dreamily.

"Go ahead," Kyohei said. "Have soldiers guarding them at all times." He then fixed his eyes on Sunako who was peacefully sleeping on his chest.


	10. Chapter 10

Sunako woke up on her soft four-post bed, draped with curtains on each side. She wiped her eyes and saw how dark it was. She smiled - pleased at the sight.

She then stood up and walked to the door. She opened it and saw two soldiers standing outside it. She jolted in surprise. "Kyaaa! What the… Am I a criminal now? What did I do? What happened? Why am I here?" she cried panicking in her chibi form. She ran back and forth until she bumped into Kyohei's legs.

He was walking at the hallway.

"Calm down. They're just here to make sure that man in the woods doesn't bother you again," he said.

Sunako looked up at him. Upon seeing his face, blood squirt out her nose.

"Sheesh… Can't you learn to control that?"

"I can't help it! You're too dazzling!" she said, wiping the blood on her face.

The guards stared at them as they quarreled with one another. "Is his majesty really going to marry this weird girl?" th first guard whispered.

"That's what they say. Anyway, they act somewhat alike, don't they?" the second guard whispered back.

"Yes. I guess they **will** make a good couple," the first guard answered.

"Anyway, get down to the kitchen and cook dinner," Kyohei ordered Sunako.

"Don't you already have a cook here?" Sunako asked.

"Do you see one here right now?" Kyohei said. "Besides, learn to respect authority. You're just a commoner here, according to the script."

"What script?"

Kyohei blushed. "…The...ah...script that they were all following in this absurd story...Never mind. Go to the kitchen and fix me something to eat! I want tempura, crab, tuna!"

Sunako's stomach growled. "…Alright. I'll cook dinner," she muttered.

"Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha!" Kyohei laughed in truimph.

* * *

><p>"Why am I here again?" Sunako asked Kyohei after serving his dinner.<p>

"You're here to marry me," he said biting one tempura. "Hmm! Delicious!"

"WHAT?" the palace stretched as her cry echoed throught the town.

"Oi! You're not the only one who's not enjoying this! Just look at the bright side – you won't be living with those weird step sisters and step mother of yours."

"Hmm… But… Marrying you means I'll have to live with you, right?"

Kyohei nodded after eating two more tempuras.

"That means… that means… NO WAY! I'll melt! I would rather stay with them!" she cried out panicking.

Kyohei laughed. "It's too late! You can't go back to them now. Besides, I doubt if they would even accept you warmly after we took you from them," he then said seriously.

Sunako heavily sighed.

"Sunako-chan, Sayuri-san and her daughters – they boss you around, don't they?" Kyohei asked.

Sunako thought for a while and nodded innocently.

"They don't treat you like a family…"

Sunako changed from her chibi form to her lady-like form. "I shouldn't be," she said. "I'm not like them. I'm ugly…"

Kyohei looked at her in shock. He then looked at her with his devil eyes. "You pity yourself too much," he scolded. "You're not ugly. You just look …scary…"

Sunako looked at Kyohei.

They got caught in each other's eyes for a while and then… Squirt!

"Nosebleed again," Kyohei said, looking at Sunako as she sat fainted and bloody. He then smiled and laughed at her.

* * *

><p>"I am Sayuri-san, Nakahara Sunako's step mother," Sayuri told the guards. They immediately let her in. Sayuri opened the door and saw Sunako lying asleep on her bed. Sayuri smiled and walked toward her. She patted Sunako's shoulder to wake her up. "Sunako-chan, dear. I have a gift for your wedding," she said.<p>

Sunako woke up and slowly rubbed her eyes. "Sayuri-san…"

"I have John and that friend you were looking for, Hiroshi-kun outside."

"John! Hiroshi-kun!"

"Yes. I couldn't carry them here so I left them outside. Come with me."

Sunako jumped out of her bed and walked out of the room with Sayuri.

Meanwhile, Kyohei just spoke to the guard at the front door. "WHAT? You let her in?"

"Your majesty," they said shivering. "She said she was Nakahara Sunako's step mother so we let her in…"

"Damn it!" cried Kyohei. He then rushed to her room. Ranmaru, Takenaga and Yuki followed.

"Your majesty, what happened?" Ranmaru asked as they ran upstairs.

Sayuri led her to the attic upstairs.

"Where are Hiroshi-kun and John?" Sunako asked looking around upon entering the dark and empty room.

"They'll be taken here soon," Sayuri said. "But before that, let me give **my** gift to you."

Sunako innocently looked at her.

The sky slowly darkened as forceful winds began to blow. Kyohei and the others reached Sunako's room and found it empty. "Damn it!" said Kyohei angrily. He turned to the guards outside. "Where did they go?"

"I think they headed upstairs, your majesty," the soldier answered, shaking in fear of Kyohei's glaring evil eyes.

"…The attic…" Kyohei immediately ran upstairs.

"Wait!" Takenaga cried out. "Your majesty! Please tell us what is happening!" he said as the three of them followed him.

Kyohei heard nothing and ran in great haste to the attic.

Sayuri took out a sharp and shiny needle. It had a blood-like substance on its pointed tip. "This needle, Sunako-chan, was used to kill a thousand people with one prick," she said.

Sunako stared amazed at the needle as it appeared like it had just been used to commit a bloody crime. She imagined how it must have been used – pricked on the flesh of a person, on one's heart, or one's eye. She shivered in excitement. "Beautiful…"

Sayuri smiled. "Here dear. Hold it. It's yours," she said, handing it to her." But before Sunako could hold it in her hand, Sayuri pricked her hand with the needle. Sunako immediately took her finger away and looked at it as a drop of blood slowly slid out of the tiny wound on her finger.

Kyohei slammed the door open. "Sunako!" he shouted. Ranmaru, Takenaga and Yuki stood behind him. They saw Sayuri standing in front of them. Sunako stood facing Sayuri, Kyohei, Takenaga, Ranmaru and Yuki. She held her bleeding finger up to the level of her chin. She was no longer in her chibi form. When Kyohei slammed the door, she raised her head and looked at them.

Sayuri smiled.

Sunako slowly fell lifeless on the floor.

"SUNAKO-CHAN!" cried the four lads.


	11. Chapter 11

_Thank you so much for reading and reviewing "Twisted Tales." I'm really happy to know that there are people who find this story worth reading. _

_I hope you continue to enjoy it. The Wallflower is not mine _^ v ^ _Please read and review!_

* * *

><p>"What did you do to her, you WITCH?" Kyohei angrily yelled.<p>

"I just gave her a present, your majesty," Sayuri answered, turning to face him with a worried expression. "But she fell unconscious on the floor…" she said kneeling down to check on Sunako.

"Call the doctors! Quick!" Takenaga yelled out at the servants and soldiers waiting down the steps.

"GET AWAY FROM HER!" Kyohei shouted. "You sent that man in the woods to kill her. You wanted her dead before we could get to her. We already have him in custody and he already confessed it to us."

"Your majesty," Ranmaru said. "Sayuri-san is her step mother! She can't harm her!"

"You married Sunako's father to get his wealth and property," Kyohei continued. "You then conspired with your chef to kill him. You made it look like an ordinary murder incident – some rogue man killed him while on the road. We've done our investigation."

Ranmaru stared shocked at Sayuri. "Sa…Sayuri-san… is this true?"

"Sunako interfered with your plans on taking over the wealth," Kyohei added. "Her father secured the wealth in her name – only to be transferred to you when she dies with no heir. You had to kill her before she gets her wealth."

Sayuri bit her lips. "You impress me, your majesty," she said, smirking at Kyohei. "You do your job well."

"Sayuri-san…" Ranmaru said - shock and confusion clear on his face. "Then it's true…"

"I always had what I wanted with the beauty I possessed – money, attention, title," Sayuri said, standing up. "But this girl," she said glaring at Sunako's lifeless body. "She had none of what allure I had but she had what I had to work so hard to possess. She had her family's wealth and love. And now, the chance to be of royalty."

Sayuri turned to glare at Kyohei. "Tell me, your majesty. Is she not scary? Is she not odd? Is she not ugly? And yet you chose her over my daughters, over the other girls in the kingdom, to be your queen!"

"You have guts to call her ugly when you act filthier than what she looks like," Kyohei said glaring back at her. "If there's someone who should be called 'ugly' here, it's you."

"What?" Sayuri exclaimed. "You called me 'ugly'?"

"You may look like the prettiest of the princesses I have ever met," Ranmaru said sadly. "But I have to stand by his majesty in this one for you definitely have no right to call Sunako-chan 'ugly.'"

"How dare you! You will pay for this dearly," Sayuri shouted. "No wedding will happen. You will lose your kingdom the moment she dies of the poison that she got from the needle!"

A lightning bolt sliced the suddenly dark sky outside, while Sayuri laughed horrifyingly like a witch. A thick black smoke slowly surrounded her. Once she was fully covered by the smoke, she vanished with the smoke changing into a blinding green light - leaving only Sunako's lifeless body on the floor.

Kyohei and the others rushed to Sunako's side. Kyohei lifted her head from the floor. Her pale lips were turning paler than before. Her pale skin was turning purple.

* * *

><p>"The poison is too strong, your majesty," the head doctor of the palace said upon examining Sunako who lay unconscious on her bed. "We haven't seen any poison like it. Perhaps if we get a sample of the poison, we can formulate an antidote for it."<p>

"But the needle is no longer there," Yuki tearfully said. "We've searched everywhere."

"Then forgive me, your majesty," the doctor said. "I can no longer do anything for her."

Kyohei sighed - standing near the window and watching Sunako. "Can't you find another doctor who can help?" he asked - his words laced with desperation and guilt. "Anyone else from the kingdom? Even a sorcerer or another witch maybe?"

"You have a point there, your highness," Takenaga said standing near the doctor. "We may have hope. I'll have Noi-chi and Tamao-chan summoned immediately. They **are** after all Sunako's fairy godmothers." He quickly ran out of the room.

"Please fight it, Sunako-chan," Yuki sobbed - sitting beside her and holding her cold hand.

Ranmaru tapped Yuki's shoulder.

Yuki turned to him. "Ranmaru!" he then cried in his arms.

"Hush now, Yuki," Ranmaru said holding Yuki. "We'll save her. She won't die. She can't die. She's the heroine in this story, remember?"

"Sunako-chan!" cried Noi as she rushed to Sunak's side. "Ooh that witch will pay! I'll give her a Noi-punch! And a Noi-kick!"

"Enough of your irritating noise!" Kyohei snapped. "Can you cure her or not?"

Tamao examined Sunako. "I'm afraid the poison has already spread," Tamao said. "And it's too powerful for us to vanquish from her body."

"But we can bend its effect, can't we Tamao-chi?" Noi said.

"Oh! Yes! Of course…"

"By bending its effect," Takenaga said. "You mean she won't die?"

"Yes," Noi answered. "She won't die. Instead, she'll fall in a deep slumber, similar to what state she is in at present but she won't lose her life. And instead of the kingdom being lost with her death, it will fall into a similar slumber."

"You mean we'll all fall asleep too?" Ranmaru asked.

"It's possible," Noi said. "We haven't actually used the spell before."

"How will she wake up then?" said Yuki.

"She'll wake up in a kiss," Noi answered.

"Then let's have his majesty kiss her immediately after the spell is cast," Ranmaru cried out.

"Why me?" Kyohei asked.

"She's your true love, remember?"

"No, no, no," Noi said. "It's not just an ordinary kiss that will wake her up. It's a kiss built on devotion, passion and true love. The one who will give the kiss must love her truly from the bottom of his heart."

"You love her, don't you, your majesty?" Takenaga asked Kyohei.

"Love her? I would rather die than date her."

"So we have a problem," Takenaga said looking away sadly. "How long will she sleep if ever no one kisses her?"

"Forever – until someone comes to do so," Noi said.

"Your majesty, you **must** love her!" Ranmaru ordered Kyohei.

"Ranmaru-kun, love isn't something you just tell someone to do!" Noi yelled. "You can't force his majesty to love Sunako-chan if he doesn't love her!"

"How will we wake her up then?" Ranmaru asked.

"I don't know," Noi answered. "I guess we'll just have to wait for that someone who will truly love her to come here and give her a kiss as a sign of his love and devotion. Until then, I won't be able to speak to Takenaga-kun again…"

Noi burst into tears.

"…And I'll no longer see Ranmaru-kun," Tamao whiepered sadly - a tear sliding down her cheek.

Takenaga embraced Noi. "There, there… I'll still be beside you when you wake up anyway," he said smiling sweetly at her.

Noi looked at Takenaga and smiled. She nodded. "You're right! We'll still be together."

Ranmaru walked toward Tamao. "You know…" Ranmaru began shyly. "We'd probably still be with each other too when we wake up. After all, we'll be in this room 'til then."

Tamao smiled at Ranmaru and nodded.

"I have a question," Yuki said raising his hand. "When this someone comes and kisses Sunako-chan and we wake up, does that still mean she'll marry his majesty or does this mean she'll marry this 'someone' instead?"

They all stood silent in thought.

"You're right," Takenaga said. "That **is** a problem."

"So do we call the wedding off?" Yuki asked.

Kyohei looked subtly at Sunako and took a deep breath. "Call it off," he said. "Now can you cast the spell now before she dies?" he asked, glaring at Noi.

The others looked sadly at Kyohei.

"Are you sure about this, your majesty?" Takenaga asked.

"I don't like these things anyway," Kyohei said looking away.

"But what about Sunako-chan?" Yuki asked. "Are you sure you're going to let her go just like that?"

"Can we stop this nonsense and just save her already?" Kyohei shouted.

"…Alright," Noi said.

Noi and Tamao nodded at each other and waved their wands at Sunako.

A cloud of sparkling dust and light slowly covered her. It flew inside the room and flew outside through the window and door.

Sunako's cheeks started to gain color. From purple, her cheeks and lips became fair and rosy.

At the same time, rose vines crept inside the room and covered the floor, the ceiling, the walls, windows and the door. They crept to Sunako's bed. And on the tips and tiny branches of the vines, there bloomed big red roses.

"What are these for?" Ranmaru asked.

Noi smiled shyly. "No idea," she answered. "I told you we haven't used this spell before."

As the roses opened, they released a glittering gold dust that carried the soft and sweet scent of the flower.

Everyone in the room started yawning, one by one, upon smelling the dust.

Yuki fell asleep with his head resting on Sunako's hand. Ranmaru fell asleep, resting his back on the side of Sunako's bed - holding an unconscious Tamao in his arms. Takenaga fell asleep holding Noi as they sat against the wall across Sunako's bed.

Soon, the whole kingdom was covered with the blooming rose and everyone fell asleep.

Kyohei started yawning. He noticed how the others had quickly fallen asleep before he did.

"Sheesh… You guys left me again…" he said smiling at his sleeping friends.

He then walked shakily toward Sunako - his vision starting to blur. He yawned once more as he gazed at Sunako.

"You're not ugly," he said looking at Sunako's face. "You were never ugly. Whoever that guy was, he made a huge mistake." He touched her cheek with the back of his fingers and smiled. "I hope that someone takes good care of you because if he doesn't, I'll throw him down to hell," he scolded.

Kyohei yawned again - his knees shaking. With the last ounce of his strength he kissed Sunako's lips.

Kyohei fell unconscious - kneeling on the side of the bed – his head resting on her right shoulder.


	12. Chapter 12

Just as Kyohei closed his eyes, Sunako's lips shimmered.

The roses glowed and slowly dropped their petals. The vines withdrew themselves and vanished. A blanket of shining gold dust surrounded the place as small balls of light floated out of Sunako's sleeping body. The gold dust awakened everyone who fell asleep.

Soon, Ranmaru, Tamao, Yuki, Noi and Takenaga were yawning once more and opening their eyes to the shimmering lights in the room.

"What happened?" Takenaga asked. "What's happening here?"

"How long has it been since we slept?" Yuki asked, scratching his teary eyes.

"Not long I think," Noi answered. "There hasn't been any dust or cobwebs on us yet."

"So he came already," Ranmaru said. "Where is he?"

Takenaga had his eyes fixed at Kyohei who was still lying unconscious with his face close to Sunako's. "His majesty," he said. "His majesty kissed her…"

They all stood shocked. They gazed at the sleeping couple.

"Then… his majesty doesn't like her," Yuki said. "He loves her!" he exclaimed cheerfully with tears of joy flooding his eyes.

"They're really meant for each other," Noi said crying happily for the two.

Takenaga held Noi against his chest to comfort her.

Tears of joy fell from their eyes.

Sunako slowly opened her eyes as Kyohei slowly opened his. He yawned, stretching his long arms and wiped his teary eyes. "Is the spell broken already?," Kyohei asked. He then yawned once more and looked around. "Where is he? Where's the guy who broke the spell?"

Sunako innocently wiped her eyes and yawned. "What happened?" she asked sitting up.

Takenaga and the others smiled at Kyohei. "Your majesty," he began. "You gave her a kiss before you fell asleep, didn't you?"

Kyohei blushed and froze for a while.

Yuki smiled excitedly at Kyohei. "Your kiss broke the spell your highness!"

Sunako stared at Yuki. "…Kiss?"

"Your true love saved her," Ranmaru said dramatically bowing at Kyohei.

Kyohei's jaw dropped in shock. "What…" He then looked at Sunako.

She sat still – awestruck upon hearing how Kyohei kissed her.

"HURRAY!" Yuki happily exclaimed. "THE WEDDING IS ON!"

"I'm dead," Sunako muttered.

Kyohei scratched his head. "I don't understand…"

* * *

><p>"NOOO!" Sunako yelled in her chibi-form while running back and forth.<p>

She wore a white laced and beautifully embellished wedding gown. She also had a long white veil, held by the red rose pinned on her hair, at the back of her head. "I don't want to go! I don't want to go! I'll melt into the light!"

"Sunako-chan, calm down!" Noi said. She was standing in the room with Tamao. They had just finished fixing Sunako's make up. "This is your wedding day. This is every girl's dream."

"Well this isn't **my** dream," Sunako said. "I would rather die!"

"Stop saying that!" Noi scolded. "It isn't that easy to find a man who'll love you truly and devotedly, you know!"

"But this is a fairy tale!" Sunako defended. "It isn't that hard to find one here!"

"Oh, right," Noi said smiling.

"Sunako-chan," Tamao said. "Don't you like his majesty?"

"No I don't!" Sunako cried out. "He's too dazzling! I can't even look at him without my nose bleeding!"

"Don't you think the reason why you can't look at his majesty isn't just because of what he looks like?" Noi asked. "Rather, it's because you like him and you feel extremely shy around him?"

Sunako stared at Noi and Tamao

"No," she answered innocently.

Noi and Tamao stood blushing and looking away.

"I see," Noi said.

They suddenly heard a loud noise coming from outside.

A commotion ensued in the garden – the place of the wedding ceremony.

"What's happening?" Noi asked, peeking out the window with Sunako and Tamao.

They saw a caricature-boss and a group of gang members wrecking the preparation for the wedding.

"…Hanayashiki?" Sunako asked recognizing the man.

"How dare you trespass in the royal palace?" Yuki shouted, pretending to be brave with his teary eyes.

Ranmaru, Takenaga and Kyohei rushed to the scene with the palace soldiers.

"You," Kyohei said, recognizing the man. "You're the one who took Sunako-chan away last time using the skull, John."

"Sayuri-san told me about your plan of marrying the lily of my heart," Hanayashiki said.

"Lily… of my… heart?" Ranmaru, Takenaga and Yuki asked in confusion.

"What kind of a term of endearment is that?" Takenaga wondered.

Sunako gasped hearing Kyohei mention the skull's name. "John," she shouted, quickly running down to the garden.

"Sunako-chan, wait!" Noi and Tamao cried out, running to follow her.

"And I presume she told you how she attempted to kill her," Kyohei said.

"Stop pointing fingers at people!" Hanayashiki yelled. "Sayuri-san won't kill the lily of my heart! "

"This is really painful to hear," Takenaga commented. Ranmaru and Yuki nodded.

"You'll have to fight me before you lay a hand on her," Hanayashiki said.

"Sorry. I don't like wasting my time for nonsense," Kyohei said, scratching his head and turning away.

"…Lily of my heart!" Hanayashiki exclaimed seeing Sunako running toward them.

"…Eh?" Kyohei turned around and saw her.

"Ha! You're right," Hanayashiki said. "I don't need to fight you for she will not marry you." He then held out the anatomy model – Hiroshi, and the skull John.

"Hiroshi-kun! John!" cried Sunako. She got angry and prepared to attack them.

A gang member behind Hanayashiki took hold of Hiroshi and aimed a hammer at its head. "Come violently to us and you'll never see his head whole again," the gang member said.

Sunako froze and stood back.

"Come to me, lily of my heart, and I will give them to you," Hanayashiki said.

Sunako stared at Hanayashiki. She then walked calmly toward the gang.

"What?" Kyohei exclaimed. "That's just a mannequin!"

"I guess it isn't just a mannequin to her, your majesty," Takenaga said. "She really **is **a weird girl."

The gang members prepared a rope to tie Sunako up.

Kyohei pulled her to his side. "Stop that, you idiot!" he scolded her. "They'll just tie you up!" He then looked at Hanayashiki. "Fight me, man-to-man," he yelled.

"What?" Hanayashiki asked in confusion.

"I said fight me," Kyohei said pulling Sunako to stand behind him. "If I win, you will give those things back to her."

Sunako changed from her chibi form, into her normal form and stared at Kyohei surprised.

For some reason, she felt her heart beat faster.

"And if you lose," Hanayashiki said smirking slyly at Kyohei. "I get them – these mannequins and the lily of my heart - both."

"…Whatever," Kyohei muttered glaring at Hanayashiki.

The two lads faced each other and started hurling punches and kicks at one another.

Kyohei was winning.

"There's no way his majesty will lose in this kind of brawl fight," Ranmaru said.

Just then, a gang member ran behind Kyohei and hit Kyohei's head with a steel pipe.

Blood spattered on the ground as Kyohei fell on this knees. He raised his head up.

"Oh, no! Your majesty," cried Takenaga, Ranmaru, Yuki, Noi and Tamao.

"That's cheating!" Noi shouted. "You useless ugly cowards!"

Sunako saw Kyohei's bloody face.

Hanayashiki grinned and kicked Kyohei's face while he was still dizzy and weak. Kyohei tried to stand up but Hanayashiki kicked him several times until he fell on his knees once more.


	13. Chapter 13

Sunako felt anger rush into her veins.

She walked up to Hanayashiki, grabbed his wrists and threw him from side to side several times until she was satisfied. She then clenched her fists and hurled punches and kicks at the gang members behind him until they fell, bleeding and weak, on the ground.

Kyohei watched her defeat the men down one-by-one. "Amazing!" he gasped in excitement.

"…Lily of my heart…why?" Hanayashiki asked trying to open his swollen eyelids while he attempted to crawl toward Sunako.

"You have no right to lay a finger on God's most dazzling creation!" Sunako shouted angrily.

Kyohei and the others stared confused at the scene in front of them.

"…Most dazzling… creation?" they all muttered.

"Apologize to him, NOW!" Sunako ordered pointing at Kyohei.

"We're sorry!" cried the gang members before they ran away, dragging Hanayashiki and leaving Hiroshi and John.

Kyohei smirked and wiped the blood from the side of his lips. He stood up and forced his shaking legs to walk toward Sunako.

"What's that line again?" he asked smiling at Sunako. "I, Takano Kyohei, take thee, Nakahara Sunako, to be my lawfully wedded wife and queen…"

The others stared in shock at Kyohei. Takenaga then realized what was happening. "Quick!" he cried. "Call the bishop!"

Ranmaru and Yuki swiftly ran away and returned carrying the bishop in their arms.

Kyohei held Sunako's hand.

Sunako turned to look at him - confused as to why Kyohei was holding her hand.

Kyohei felt his head ache. "Damn it," he winced. "Nakahara Sunako, do you… take me… as your lawfully wedded husband and… king…"

He felt his knees give in to the pain.

"Your majesty!" the others anxiously exclaimed.

Sunako quickly knelt down and caught him.

Kyohei looked up at her.

Sunako froze. She could feel his breath against her face.

Kyohei smirked and looked deep into her eyes.

"Say I do," he said.

"What?" Sunako asked - puzzled.

"You want to go home, don't you?" Kyohei said.

"Yes, I do."

"Then I now pronounce you man and wife," the bishop announced holding an open bible. "King and Queen!"

"What?" Sunako exclaimed. "That wasn't the question that I answered! You got it wrong!"

"You may now kiss the bride," the bishop said closing the bible.

"Kiss? No! Wait! You got it wrong!"

Kyohei smirked and held her chin. He pulled her face toward his.

"Let's just finish this, shall we?" he whispered. He then laid his lips on hers.

Sunako froze.

A huge splash of blood surged out of Sunako's nose and straight onto Kyohei's face. "WHAT THE… SUNAKO-CHAN!" cried Kyohei angrily.

Takenaga, Ranmaru and Yuki rushed to Sunako's room. "What happened?"


	14. Chapter 14

They saw blood all over Sunako's bed.

Kyohei was standing beside the bed and wiping the blood off his face. His uniform was also bloody.

The blood dripped down the floor.

Sunako was in her chibi form, lying flat on the bed. Her nose still had a small fountain of blood.

"What the," Ranmaru exclaimed holding his mouth in disgust.

"KYAAA! SCARY!" Yuki screamed as he hid behind Takenaga.

"Kyohei! What did you do?" Takenaga scolded.

"I just went here to wake her up," Kyohei said. "And then she sprayed blood all over me."

They quickly took Sunako to the dining room.

"Did you have a bad dream, Sunako-chan?" Yuki asked after handing her a cup of hot chocolate.

Sunako was still in her chibi form. She was a bit pale and weak, but her cheeks were blushing. Blood was still flowing from her nose.

Ranmaru held a towel to wipe them.

"This white towel is red already," Ranmaru said looking grimly at the towel in his hand. "And her nose is still bleeding. Yuki, I don't think this is an ordinary case of nosebleed anymore. It's more like hemorrhage."

"You're right," Yuki said. "Let's take her to the hospital?"

"We already fixed the blankets," Takenaga said as he walked into the dining room with Kyohei walking behind him.

Kyohei had taken a bath after he helped Takenaga clean Sunako's bed. He walked out of the bathroom with a pair of clean uniform pants on. He was still wiping his wet hair with a towel when he walked to the dining room with Takenaga.

"How is she?" Kyohei asked.

"Her nose is still bleeding," Ranmaru answered looking at Sunako. "...Although it doesn't look like a fountain anymore."

"What's the matter with you anyway?" Kyohei asked Sunako as he looked closely at her. "It's not like you've never seen me in your room before."

Upon seeing his face, Sunako's nose started to bleed profusely once more.

"Kyohei! Back off! Back off!" Ranmaru, Yuki, and Takenaga shouted, panicking.

Kyohei stepped back. "So…Sorry… Sorry…"

The bleeding weakened and the blood began to merely drip down her nose.

"Sunako-chan," Takenaga said thinking hard for an explanation about what was happening. "Could you have dreamt about us?"

Sunako looked at Takenaga and nodded.

"Ah! So you dreamt about me," Ranmaru flirtingly said. "I didn't know you liked me that much too," he said looking closely at Sunako's lips - his face near enough for him to feel her breath.

"Oi! Ranmaru," Kyohei shouted. "This is Sunako-chan we're talking about. She probably had a dream where you were eaten by a group of zombies."

Ranmaru sighed and looked away. "True," he said. "She'll never dream of me as someone of royalty."

Sunako shook her head and pointed at Ranmaru. "You **were** of royalty," she said.

"Eh?" said the four lads baffled.

Sunako pointed to Takenaga. "You were like Ranmaru-kun." She pointed at Kyohei. "You were Ranmaru-kun and Takenaga-kun's master - the royal prince."

Kyohei burst into laughter. "Ha! Ha! Ha! You mean they were my royal servants?" he said. "Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha! Good one, Sunako-chan!"

"It was just a dream, Kyohei," Ranmaru and Takenaga said glaring at Kyohei.

"…Still, you two were my servants!" Kyohei teased. "Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha!"

"What about me, Sunako-chan?" Yuki asked pointing a finger at himself. "You dreamt about me too, didn't you?"

Sunako nodded. "You were the prince's royal pet bunny," she said.

Kyohei, Ranmaru and Takenaga burst into laughter.

"That's not fair!" cried Yuki - tears streaming down his cheeks. "How come I was only a pet?"

"Yuki," Takenaga said patting Yuki's shoulder. "It was just a dream anyway…"

"You know, Kyohei," Ranmaru said. "I think I'd like to see what Yuki looked like in Sunako-chan's dream."

"Me too!" Kyohei said. "He must have been **really** cute."

The two then burst into laughter. Takenaga tried hard to hold his laughter but he ended laughing with them once more. Yuki sobbed and protested.

"You know," Takenaga said calming down a little. "Since you've mentioned it, I think I had the same dream as you had. Noi-chi was your fairy godmother."

"Tamao-chan too!" Ranmaru exclaimed. "Hey… I think I had the same dream too. I think Sayuri-san was there… as well as the Goth-loli sisters."

"And the chef!" Yuki cried out. "He tried to kill me when I saw him try to kill Sunako-chan! Wait! I think I also had that dream last night."

"These dreams you're talking about," Kyohei seriously said. "Did it seem like a mixture of fairytales? Like the ones we read last night for the book report?"

"YES!" the four answered. "You dreamt about it too?"

Kyohei nodded. "It really gave me a headache last night. I guess I really felt the whack at the head I got from the brawl fight."

"I told you reading books was a bad idea," Ranmaru said frowning at Takenaga. "Look what it did to Sunako-chan."

"But Sunako-chan was super cool even in the dream," Yuki said. "Both of you were!" he said looking at Kyohei. "However, I wish I remember how it ended. The last scene I remember is the brawl thing… or rather when the gang members apologized to Kyohei and ran away."

"Same here," Takenaga holding his chin in contemplation. "I seem to have forgotten what else happened after that although I know it didn't end there."

"Me too," Ranmaru combing his hair back with his hand. "But whatever it was, I think it concerned a priest of some sort."

The Takenaga and Yuki nodded.

Sunako and Kyohei just stared at them.

Kyohei then noticed Sunako sigh in relief.

He knelt down and looked at her. "Oi, Sunako-chan," he whispered. "Honestly, you remember how it ended, didn't you?"

Sunako froze and blushed. She quickly turned her head away from Kyohei. "Uh…"

Kyohei smirked. "That's why your nose bled," he said. "...My queen…"

Blood profusely spilled out off Sunako's nose. It was so strong that she fainted and fell on her back on the floor.

"SUNAKO-CHAN!" Takenaga, Ranmaru and Yuki rushed to attend to her.

Kyohei just gazed at her - a smile on his lips. "I'll get her another towel," he said. He giggled happily as he turned and walked away.

"Hmm," Kyohei said taking another quick glance at the unconscious and bleeing Sunako on the dining room floor. "I guess reading books aren't that bad after all."

* * *

><p><em>Thank you all so much for reading and reviewing 'Twisted Tales!' I'm glad to know that there were people who actually felt entertained and happy after reading this. <em>_It's really an honour to hear those heart-warming reviews. _

_I hope you all enjoyed this last chapter for 'Twisted Tales'. Do tell me what you thought about it. _

_You all have a great day ahead of you! _^ v ^


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